Standard: 9-10.RH.8 – Assess the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author’s claims.
Grade level: Grade 9-10
Subject: English Language Arts
Domain: History/Social Studies
Teacher Overview
This standard focuses on developing students’ critical thinking skills by teaching them to assess the quality and relevance of evidence used to support claims in a text. This skill is crucial for understanding historical and social studies content, as it enables students to discern credible sources and arguments. Students should be comfortable identifying main ideas and supporting details in a text, and have a basic understanding of different types of evidence.
Mastering this standard will equip students with the ability to construct well-supported arguments and critically evaluate complex texts, skills that are essential for advanced academic work and informed citizenship.
Common Misconception 1
Some students may assume that all evidence presented by an author is equally valid. This misconception stems from a lack of critical evaluation skills.
Intervention 1
Introduce activities where students compare strong and weak evidence in various texts, highlighting the characteristics that make evidence compelling or dubious.
Common Misconception 2
Another common misconception is that the mere presence of evidence is sufficient to support a claim. Students may not consider the quality or relevance of the evidence.
Intervention 2
Have students practice evaluating the relevance and reliability of evidence by examining case studies and contrasting them with counter-evidence or alternative viewpoints.
Prerequisite Knowledge
Students should have a basic understanding of identifying main ideas and supporting details in a text, as well as familiarity with different types of evidence (e.g., statistical, anecdotal, testimonial).
Subsequent Knowledge
After mastering this standard, students will be able to construct well-supported arguments in their own writing and critically evaluate complex texts across various subjects.
Instructional Activities
- Analyze primary sources from history for bias and reliability.
- Evaluate the credibility of news articles on current events.
- Critique opinion pieces for the strength of their arguments.
- Assess the use of evidence in academic essays.
